Missing schoolgirl Chloe Kinsella is being held against her will, her distraught sister feared last night.

Linsey Kinsella, 23, is convinced her younger sibling has been kidnapped and said she is beginning to “lose hope” of ever seeing her again.

Chloe, 15, vanished last Saturday night after leaving her family home in Kileely, Limerick.

Garda sniffer dogs led officers from her bedroom window, over a wall and into a nearby school.

But Chloe’s scent ran cold outside the school at a busy road.

Throughout yesterday around 500 people joined forces at St Munchin’s Community Centre before trawling the surrounding area to try and track her down.

Linsey said: “It’s day four. Everyday that passes, it’s kind of fading, and you are kind of losing hope.

“I think personally someone out there has her, because Chloe would have come home by now. That’s what I think, that she is being held.”

Despite the family’s theory, gardai said there was no evidence to suggest the teenager had been abducted or murdered.

The talented hip hop dancer once performed for President Michael D Higgins with her group Flawless when he visited the community soon after his election two years ago.

Sister Linsey Ann Kinsella

A Garda spokesman said: “It is not a murder investigation.

“It is a missing person’s case. The searches are ongoing.

“There is a big Garda search liaising with all the search groups and the community.

“There is great co-operation between the family, Chloe’s friends, gardai and the search teams.”

Meanwhile, Linsey denied claims her family had contacted a clairvoyant who told them Chloe was been held against her will – or was dead.

Her heartbroken mum Shirley said: “I’m devastated, and the longer the days go on it’s worse. There’s no ending to it.

“I just hope to god that she comes home safe, that’s the main thing.”

Mum Shirley Kinsella at her home in Limerick (Image: Brian Arthur)

The mother of nine added: “If she’s with someone out there, just come home.

“I just want to hold her. I miss her so much. I love her.

“There’s no sign of her at all. They are just coming up with empty traces. I’m just losing my head at this stage.

“The nighttime is the worst, waiting for the nighttime to come in, because I don’t know where she is or if she’s lying out there or what’s after happening to her.

“If anyone has her, will ye please let her go.”

Mother-of-four Vera Dillon, 58, has been helping in the search since Sunday.

She said: “I have four grown up children and four grandchildren and this is every mother’s worst nightmare.” Another searcher, Michelle Brosnihan added: “I’m a mother of one. He’s nine. It’s devastating for the family.

“I just can’t believe what they’re going through. We are just trying to do our best for them.”

Members of the search team are briefed by Sgt Michaela Moloney (Image: Brian Arthur)

Local businessman John Costelloe, who is coordinating the search, called for the Army to help.

He also called on the Health Service Executive to provide counselling for Chloe’s friends.

Mr Costelloe said: “We’ve gone through the entire city with a fine tooth comb. You cannot avoid a poster. Somebody out there knows something. We need information and we need it as fast as we can to locate Chloe.”

Mr Costelloe appealed to young people rein in their involvement in the search after a young man fell through a roof at a derelcit site while looking for Chloe. He added: “The young people have done so much, but I think it’s time for the experts to move in.”

Shirley, who hasn’t slept for days, described her missing daughter as a quiet bubbly little girl”.

She added: “Well, she’s beautiful, and I’m not just saying that because she’s my daughter. She’s kind-hearted and very outgoing. She never gave me a bit of trouble in her life. She would go to school and come home. I’m shocked. She was a good little kid.

Missing girl Chloe holds a child in her arms

“I wish to God she would just come home. There’s nothing I wouldn’t give to have her walk through the front gate.”

Linda Ledger, who runs St Munchin’s Community Centre, described Chloe as “a fabulous little dancer”. She added: “She was excellent, fabulous... she’s like a little piece of elastic. She was at the upper end of it.

Alan Hannan, whose innocent son Jeffrey, 19, was murdered just yards from his home in Southill, Limerick, in 2010 works at the centre. The nightmare of Chloe’s disappearance brought back overwhelming feelings of loss for his son who was beaten to death in an unprovoked attack.

Alan said: “I went through it myself. It’s unnatural. It’s Jeffrey’s birthday next week, he would have been 25. It’s his sixth anniversary is next month. When I heard about Chloe my stomach started churning.”

Last night search groups joined the Limerick Marine Search and Rescue Service and the Shannon-based Coast Guard Rescue Helicopter to sweep the banks of the River Shannon.